Mobile phone in your tooth

The Royal College of Art in London, England has been running its Postgraduate Art & Design Summer Exhibitions since May 30th this year. On June 28th the Architecture & Design, Communications, Fashion & Textiles, and Humanities show begins. One of the highlights will be a mobile phone designed to fit inside a tooth.

The two students behind the idea are graduates James Auger and Jimmy Loizeau. The device works by picking up signals with a radio receiver and then conveying them to the person's ear. This is done with a small vibrating plate inside the tooth that is wired up through the jawbone to the ear.

The technology would be useful for everyone who uses a mobile phone, but examples of where the technology could be beneficial are team sports, where the manager needs to talk to the players throughout a game, and finance, where stockbrokers who need up-to-the-minute share information. Currently the device does not have a communications chip to allow it to become a fully-fledged phone, but Auger and Loizeau are quick to point out that current technology would make this a simple task.

The Exhibition is held every year to demonstrate what the graduates have thought up and always produces a few notable inventions. Check out The Show 2002 website for more.

MATTHEW'S OPINION
There are good and bad sides to this bit of news. It would do away with the need to carry around a phone at all–phone numbers could be stored or dialed just by talking, and the phone would probably be activated and deactivated via a keyword of your choice. It would also be a lot safer for people who drive, as they would not need to take their hands off the wheel (much like a hands-free kit allows). Basically, it does away with all the problems associated with current mobiles.

The bad side is mainly the current issues with mobile phones and radiation. If the risks turn out to be high with current mobile phones (there are ongoing investigations into the risks by several organizations) then having one inside your tooth would obviously increase this risk. Another problem would be wiring it up to your ear–they say that it would go straight through your jaw, so I assume you would need an operation. I don't know many people who would be willing to have this done.

It remains to be seen how far the two students take this technology. They might get snapped up by a large technology firm … or not. I am sure that if they do pursue it further, health issues will feature heavily in whether it is approved for sale. Its success will mainly be due to its ease of installation and the quality of the service.

USER COMMENTS 60 comment(s)

what about…(9:17am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)the risk of infection and complications of having somthing foreign imedded into your skull? this will not make it to mass market as most people are probably content to just hold thier cellphones. – by BenTheWorm

Sad(9:27am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)What your joking arent you. I know that I for one would not elect to have a dental surgery to install a phone into my body. Plus radiation would penetrate the brain easier. IT'S NOT A TUMOR. Im with BenTheWorm I will just hold my cell and skip the RF as much as I can. I mean I guess I should get it to go along with my embedded tracking device and New Embedded American Express card. – by TheBorge

And silicone breast implants kill!!!!!(9:44am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)Isn't it amazing how bad science takes on a life of it's own? So, despite the fact that there is good evidence to refute the speculation and bad science that insinuated that low energy devices cause problems (we are talking microwave radiation, not gamma radiation), people still talk about it as if cell phones cause health problems. People still can't use silicone breast implants, even though they are superior and by now well proven to cause none of the problems people once speculated that they did. Matthew all of the GOOD science on this issue is quite clear, so who gives a flip what paranoid fools and advocacy groups might still be investigating? The kinds of low energy radiation cell phones produce do not break molecular bonds. There is no reason to think they could cause cancer. We have gone through the same thing with power lines in people's backyards, which also have been quite convincingly been proven unrelated to the incidence of brain cancer.

Kent,(10:17am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)And from now on, stop playing with yourself!– by God

power???(10:22am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)“Currently the device does not have a communications chip to allow it to become a fully-fledged phone, but Auger and Loizeau are quick to point out that current technology would make this a simple task.”

ok… first of all… it's alot easier said then done. let's say this thing was safe… take a look at our smallest available cell phone… that alone is too big to fit in a couple of teeth. then of course you would have to highly update the voice recognition for it to actually work.

second… how would this thing be powered? like would we change all our teeth with little lithium ion batteries??? would you plug yourself in at night the be charged? like how?

and to end it all… WHY? i mean… i like to be able to turn my phone off and have piece and quiet… imagine having this device embedded in the middle of you skull… what about if a newer technology comes out… you have to get surgery every other month…

this idea won't fly… if a company buys their idea… good luck. – by my 3 cents.

just think about it…(10:27am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)the Feds want to wiretap you because you fall into their “questionable citizen” category (which means you ask questions you shouldn't and think for yourself, but that's another topic), so instead of tapping your line and only getting the calls you make from it, they get permission to tap your tooth, or install a tap in your tooth next time you check in to get a root canal or a filling, and then they can get everything you say. – by just a thought

Upgrades(10:36am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)My issue with any technology implant is the rate was which tech changes. How much are you willing to pay, how invasive a procedure will you go thru for something that will be obsolete in 5 years? Nice phone, but we've switched frequency and protocols now and that unit isn't upgradable. We've also found that whateverchemical leeches into the underlying bone, so you'll need a complete jaw replacement. But you can save 10% off the cost of the surgery if you sign this 2 year service contract. – by Robguy

Just because you can,(10:56am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)

Doesn't mean you should. – by Buford Lamonte

Hmmm(11:04am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)On the plus side, people with some types of deafness could benefit from this, in that they could use cellphones.

I'm not among that group.

And I add, “Thank God”!

Although this might seem like every teenage girl's dream come true, the prospect of an always on, can't avoid communicating device implanted in your body is pretty scary indeed.

OK, I'll grant that my deafness may contribute to my opinion on this, but do we TRULY NEED to constantly blabber at each other?

Not to mention, getting SMS spammed every time we pass by some BlueTooth enabled [BlueTooth, hmmm, Ironic?] store like we've seen in other articles.

Maybe I'm luckier than even I think I am? – by DeafDude

Uh…(11:06am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)Would this ToothPhone interfere with the Oldies AM radio station I pick up with my fillings?– by Jklm

Matthew(11:21am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)You wouldn't have to “wire it to your ear” as the waves carry through the skull better than through the air.

You also would need no battery. A pepsi or a glass of orange juice (anything remotely acidit) could power it.

It could run on vastly lower transmission power, negating any risk from RF (face it, power carried in a package that small can't possibly be dangerous) as its real transmitter would have to be in a pocket.

However, getting a tooth implanted IS considered surgery. A normal tooth implant costs over 1,000 USD. Are you willing to pay fifteen grand for a telephone? – by /sado man

reminds me.. (11:48am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)I was at the store the other day and saw this guy carrying on an animated conversation with himself… I wondered if he was off his medication, but then realized he had an earclip with a dangling mic. … of course that doesn't mean the phone was on… – by me, myself, and i

re: me, myslef, and i(11:55am EST Mon Jun 24 2002)the best is when blondes do that… already that they look and are mentally challenged… they have to be talking to themselves. – by gotta love that.

We had these years ago(12:28pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)They replaced our shoe phones with these when the Enemy found our shoe phones. My co worker, agent 99, invented them (smart broad).

Before I give you any more information about this let me lower the cone of silen – by Max Smart

can i order pizza?(1:15pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)I just wanna know if i can order pizza ? will it show up on their caller id box with my name? how will they know where to send the pizza? – by hungryguy

Gilligan's Island????(1:20pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)Wasn't there an episode of Gilligan's Island like this? Gilligan hit his jaw on something and one of his fillings started picking up radio signals. LOL – by Too Funny

Vibrations, Not Wires!(1:54pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)The sound is conveyed through vibrations to your inner ear. There is no wiring required.

As for the intricate and expensive nature of dental surgery… one can imagine that after the technology has matured, tools will be developed that allow the device to be popped in easily — just liked getting your ears pierced! You could maybe even buy a kit to do it yourself.

Stop being so pessimistic, geeks!

– by NotAGeek

oops(2:50pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)That's 10k, not 1k. Hell, just a root canal and a crown costs close to 1k.

I think I'll stick to my analog motorola. – by /sm(ile)

re:/sm(ile)(3:54pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)Where do you get your dental work done?I had to have a root canal, and that alone cost me 600 bucks. crown is another 900.00. I shoulda been a dentist. – by time to bail

This is BullS**t(4:03pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)But it would be funny if one of your enemies got one installed. Imagaine it, crank call them 24/7, or better yet, send signals of the same frequency to there skull so they can hear whatever you want them to hear all day long. MWA-AHAHHAHAHAHHAAA – by Ass Face

This is old news.(5:38pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)

This concept was orignnally invented back in the late 1700's, in France, when Luc de Montpellier stuffed a trumpet up his brother's ass after the two had engaged in a rather serious arguement.

For the rest of his life, after the incident, Georges was known to to have been capable of the most stunning, ableit brief “ring tones”. – by Moutarde de la merde

ok,what about a fax machine in my butt?(5:50pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)this is a great concept. – by im getting a fax

Its Art(8:04pm EST Mon Jun 24 2002)They are Art students not geeks they made the thing to take the piss about tecnology. Not because they want to really make one. – by London

Out of Business(5:42am EST Tue Jun 25 2002)What happens if your provider goes out of business? Maybe this will prove to be a new “help I've fallen and can't get up” device that they can put in false teeth? I just can't imagine the tooth fairy being able to handle this new workload that technology is trying to dish out. – by cwm

conduction and distraction(9:17am EST Tue Jun 25 2002)Your statement that having a phone in your tooth would remove all the negative activity associated with cell phones almost cuts it except for the fact that even just talking to someone acts as a distraction from the activity of choice – namely driving the car!The method of sound transmission isn't made very clear. It first sounded to me as though they were relying on sound conduction through the jawbone into the ear – much as is done with the old tuning fork in the mouth demonstration. – by BCD

OK, the boring lecture(10:51am EST Tue Jun 25 2002)It's called bone conduction hearing. An example where this thingy would work is when the three little bones [incus, stapes and malleus] no longer have any joint activity and are fused, thus not transmitting any activity from the eardrum.

This isn't gonna do Jack if you have a blasted out cochlea or a damaged or absent auditory nerve.

Lecture over. No quiz, either!

– by DeafDude

Warrantee(5:23pm EST Tue Jun 25 2002)And what would happen should the phone malfunction? Would the warrantee cover the cost of removing the phone and embedding another in you? I, for one, had to get another cell just this week due to malfunction.

I think it is wonderful where technology is going these days, but I'm not going to be one to get a cell phone implanted in my face. – by SaraKat

I've always wondered…(12:56pm EST Wed Jun 26 2002)when you see a 'crazy' person on the street carring on a conversation (apparently with themselves) might there not be another 'crazy' person somewhere else in the world with the other half of the conversation? If we could just tap into this telepathic 'always on' network without going nuts ourselves… – by scalpod

Subliminal messaging at it's finest(1:00pm EST Wed Jun 26 2002)Just wait until the victim has fallen alseep, then hack their tooth and start pumping in whatever you want (propaganda, advertising, etc.) Hell, we could have a thousand 'moles' after just one evening, all subconsiously waiting for that signal to simulatenously drive their bomb-laden cars into the nearest Federal building. Great, what will they think of next?! Check please! I'm outta here… – by scalpod

why not?(9:43pm EST Wed Jun 26 2002)How about because we can? I could see this being used in FBI or the like, not for Mommy truck'in down the road in her SUV…but wouldn't that be funny? The next wagon to hop on. Oooh then they could have custom colored teeth – by chic

Why implant permanently?(4:56am EST Mon Jul 01 2002)I would imagine there is some possible way to stimulate the jawbone/skull directly without implanting. Maybe a cap, that is custom made to fit over your molars, and would just act as a speaker and microphone, instead of an entire communication device. Add a small amount of wireless networking technology, and you would have a totally hands free kit for your current cell phone. So now, instead of talking into a boom mike that hangs over your ear, you could just appear to be talking to yourself with no obvious phone. – by Magicker

bunch of boneheads(8:09pm EST Sat Jul 06 2002)Most of you are ranting about something for which you know nothing about. The phone is in a separate device that you carry and the sound is digitally transmited to the tooth. I have a couple of procelin crowns that I would gladly replace with such a device. It's a really simple procedure, in and out in an hour and if I don't like it I can just take it out and put the porcelin back. – by want one

This sounds so great(4:07pm EST Sun Jul 07 2002)I would love to have a sound reciever in my jaw. The phone itself would have to be external, but the gizmo in my teeth could relay sound to and from me and carry commands. Not to mention the music-listening possibilities. When it comes down to it, I don't think they're really talking about a tooth phone. They're talking about an internal I/O device that can interact with other, external systems. It's not a cyberjack, but it'll do while we wait. – by The D00d

I hear voices(12:35pm EST Wed Sep 04 2002)What happens if your schizophrenic and have the tooth phone embeded? How would you difrenciate between the two? What would the doctors think? … I HEAR VOICES I THINK I AM GOING CrAzY!!! – by Shhh!! Hear THAT

Cloak your phones(1:13pm EST Wed Nov 06 2002)

– by mc

What if…(12:47am EST Fri Nov 08 2002)The idea of having implanted technology is not a new one, but it will take alot of time and convincing to get me to have one. What happens if you lose a tooth? That could mean a huge dentistry bill as well as a expensive electronic repair bill. And if you swallow it? Im sure no one out there wants to hear my stomache. Whilst it does have a few obvious advanatges, this kind of item, I dont beleive, will take off in the public sector. It could make it interesting if you wanted to hand your phone to someone else as part of the conversation. Would I have to stand there with my mouth open whilst someone else shoves their ear in it to hear whats going on?

With the advances in nano-technology it is obvious that at one point in the near future there will be embedded devices available (btw, a tracking microchip is a crap idea. you americans are nuts….) however will it really be worth the cost and potential pain that this surgery could cause? I dont think so. I'll stick with the regular (not glued in my head) technology thankyou…. – by OzRob

Radio / Audio device only(9:46pm EST Mon Dec 23 2002)Screw having a telephone installed, What about just a standard radio / replacement for headphones? Just a little device for controlling the thing and you could listen to mp3's or the radio easily, on the go, anywhere – by Uber Geek

Part of the phone of having a cell phone is to look at it, I like my sexy Sony Ericsson phone.. heck, I'm looking at it right now [yes, I got problems]. Also, what 'bout wireless web, or viewing a phonebook.. or anything like that? Talking on messenger? All I neato things I do with my phone..

Also, would they be able to hear if you have any slobber in your mouth.. or if you lick a tooth or something? What if you get something to eat and it dislocates it..

This idea is completely idiotic. – by 1337 G33K

i need a root canal…(3:33pm EST Wed Jan 29 2003)and would volunteer to let them try this on me if they pay for it… – by krishna

I have a kinetic mobile phone implanted in my chest(12:56am EST Mon Mar 10 2003)I have a kinetic mobile phone implanted in my chest. It was put there by the Australian Federal Government.

I'm looking for people who know thesephones exist. I have been communicatingwith people from the AustralianFederal Government on it since August 21, 2001.

I can be contacted on +61 422 061 963if you have any questions, or if you can provide me with any information how to remove the phone from inside my chest. The voices of the people I am communicating with really bother me. – by Peter First.

sending to mobile(6:53am EST Mon Jul 14 2003)please give the way how to send a to a mobile through computer. – by prantik

i have one in my tooth and now people are going to pay(4:10pm EST Tue Sep 02 2003)you sneaky bastards are all going to get it. i dont care if its the last thing i do. my own friends telling me that im a schizo when they know damn well whats going on. – by billy

No offense(5:17am EST Sat Oct 16 2004)to the size nazis… but the actual electronics are scaled to convenience… the largest part of a cell phone is the battery followed by the antenna… using the basic technology for the new hearing implants, that is a small pack worn at the belt… – by The Feral Has Spoken

this tooth phone is awesome!!!!!(2:51pm EST Sat Jan 08 2005)This thing is so so so so so cool, and I can't wait to get it, b/c it seems as if it is the most best invention that i have ever heard of in my whole life!!!!!!!!!!! – by Toshia Hess

this tooth phone is awesome!!!!!(2:52pm EST Sat Jan 08 2005)This thing is so so so so so cool, and I can't wait to get it, b/c it seems as if it is the most best invention that i have ever heard of in my whole life!!!!!!!!!!! – by Toshia

dangerous(7:48pm EST Tue May 10 2005)what happens if you eat something?. You can get an electric shock. – by ritz

hello?(1:07am EST Mon Aug 01 2005)Borgify me captain! You will be assimilated! Geez, why would you want to imbed something like that into your body. Of course there are those who do worse to their bodies. Anyway, I hope those individuals know what they are doing. Lastly, this article is a sign of thing to come. – by whodoneit!

what ?(5:51am EST Mon Oct 10 2005)how can it be possible, there's lots of risk in it. my brother is deaf and the doctors implanted a hearing device within his body, causing him a partial paralysis. today he is good and healthy again but the point is, if this technology, be, inserted in human body, the result could be dangerous!!!!!!!!! – by tia li

batteries?(5:02pm EST Sun Oct 23 2005)It's obvious that the thing inside your tooth would be a simple I/O device – it's really annoying that they havn't provided any information as to how the thing should be powered – how the hell would someone recharge a tooth? I think it's an exciting concept and I'd much like to have one, you could have two teeth implanted and thus have stereo audio, and the teeth could then be connected via bluetooth to a cellphone or a mp3-player. Having things in your ear is annoying! Teeth-r-us. – by Anaythea

In the ear??(11:46am EST Thu Nov 03 2005)Oy ya i think it might be kind of annoying to have thing ringing a tickiling in your ear every 10 seconds……. anyway you can turn it off for a while or….. take it out??? – by mr…..?

Kinetic People Tracker(3:40am EST Fri Nov 04 2005)I have heard this exists, I want to adapt it to tracking wild animals, has anyone any info?– by Wildtrackerman

Maybe (6:01am EST Fri Dec 16 2005)So how would this be charged again? by insering the small right finger in a socket on tuesdays, where the phone company can transmist soft electricity special for your tooth. And, what about Net searching, viewing emails and video phoning? well of course you would have a screen implanted into your wrist to look at anything you like, I have seen this! it gets charged on Wednesdays. You can receive emails via a chip in the bum, this will store up to 4G of material, excellent sound & digital quality (recommemnded)Faxes can come through as well, you have apply for membership and permission for this from the police.as for repairs, well, you will also get 2 for 1, a spare tooth can be at the back of your mouth and it will slowley take over oncethe first one is currupt. Though it is venerable to control by remote control car radios. Can anyone tell me if it vibrates though? – by TichTechGeek

The Future(6:21am EST Fri Dec 16 2005)So if you had a phone chip in your tooth, and all your friends knew about it, you would all be sat in a close circle in the pub, shouting all sorts into your mouth, just to see what happens!! what about international calls? would they be triggered just like that? by calling a forign name for example? like Cheng! Cheng! then you would have a connection to China, you would have no control if you were talking to your mate, who has a bitter sense of humour, and he suddenly gets close to your mouth and shouts: Monseur Barboun! and you would be connected to the Alaskan region, what do you have to do to stop the connection? slap yourslef on the mouth? and what if someone next you had one of those Japanese gadgets that swich off and on other peoples' mobiles if they annoyed them? they can switch you on and off even if you were muttering to yourself… think twice before you buy one.. I am working on red light shooting from your tooth to get the attention of the bar staff and for pulling by looking them in the eye, will let you know how it goes..thank you – by Realitygeek

thanks(12:23pm EST Sat Jan 07 2006)This is an excellent site thanks for the information! – by andy

i seee(6:55pm EST Tue Apr 11 2006)this is a good site but wat r the bad things about having this devise??????? – by elmo

Fraud(12:19pm EST Wed Apr 12 2006)Just so people know, this has now turned out to be a fraud. There never was a prototype. This was an idea of two students, created to generate some conversation, who decided they could pretend they were progressing towards a working version. As far as it appears, no team is actually working towards a real version of this.

Wired news story:– by Sam

kool……….(8:59am EST Sun Sep 17 2006)man this thing is sooooooooooo kool…..i would love to hav it in my tooth!!!!!!!111 – by zak